The standard mortgage is based on the borrower paying a fixed about of money back against the mortgage loan until the full amount is paid. This standard type of mortgage is not very flexible and generally does not allow the borrower to make savings on their mortgage loan.

An offset mortgage however can benefit in various ways that may suit them better and save them money. Payments can be varied, paying more, less, and paying lump sums to reduce the mortgage debt quicker and therefore paying less interest over term of the mortgage. Some offset mortgages have savings or current accounts linked to mortgage debt. The more savings you have or money in your current account reduces the amount of interest you pay on your mortgage. These are sometimes calculated daily to make your money work the best for you.

Some offset mortgages or current account mortgages ” one ” mortgage, puts all your credit and debt into one account and the interest is calculated on the the amount left owing. As you can see from the comparison between the two types of mortgage, an offset mortgage is much more suited to a homeowner with regular savings, so that the more money in their account is going to reduce the amount of interest paid on their mortgage.

Research should be carried out on all the mortgage lenders on the market to get you the best mortgage deal around. When looking into comparing mortgages, check to see if you have had regular amounts in your savings or current accounts which could save your hard earned money when used in an offset mortgage.

The interest is only paid on the balance between your mortgage and your combined savings. The more savings you have the better, but if you need the money from your savings accounts it can still be withdrawn.

  The offset mortgage homeowner generally pays a regular monthly repayment, much like standard repayment mortgages. However as the combined savings are offset against the mortgage debt, the homeowner is reducing the amount of interest and therefore overpaying, which in turn will reduce the term of the mortgage.

Offset mortgages generally work best for people with a reasonable amount of savings or people with larger amount of money like lump sum bonuses or self employed. Without money routinely going in to the offset mortgage account there will be little benefit to the mortgage borrower.
If you are unsure about whether an offset mortgage is the right choice for you, consult an expert independent mortgage advisor. The advisor will take into account not only your savings but your future, how you spend your income and your lifestyle. Offset mortgage interest rates are rarely the best on the mortgage market so a discounted or tracker mortgage may be more suitable to your requirements if you don’t have a reasonable amount of money to offset.

Offset Mortgage Overpayments

If overpayments are made to your offset mortgage, not only do you save money by paying less interest but you are building up a cash reserve to which you can borrow from at a later date. Effectively this means that you can get a cash loan from your overpayments at the same rate as the mortgage interest which is lower than general money loans.

Many of the mortgage lenders, banks and building societies offer offset mortgages and compete with each other by offering different features and variants of a standard offset mortgage.

Standard Offset Mortgage & Current Account Mortgage
A standard offset mortgage may only be offset by your savings account whereas a current account mortgage will offset against your current account and additional accounts. The main benefit of current account mortgages is that your current account and mortgage is classed as one account. Additional savings can go towards reducing the debt balance and therefore the interest, plus you can transfer debts such as credit cards and personal loans across, basically paying the same interest rate for all your finance’s and keeping it all in one account.

Family Offset Mortgage
With first time buyers having difficulty getting on the property ladder, a family offset mortgage could be the key. A family offset mortgage enables parents to help children onto the property ladder. The first time buyer’s sign up to the mortgage and their parents or family members put their savings into the same bank, with those savings being offset against the loan and saving the purchasers thousands in interest. Access to the saved money is available but the more taken out of the account means the more interest the borrowers pay.

Flexible Offset Mortgages
Offset mortgages usually have the flexibility of overpaying, underpaying or taking payment holidays. This flexibility gives the mortgage borrower plenty of flexibility if required, however the interest will continue to accrue on the mortgage during any payment holiday. If you manage to get a lump sum or you can add it to your savings balance or pay off more of your mortgage but with an offset mortgage you can add the amount to your savings, save on interest and still have access to your money if required.
You can make overpayments directly to your mortgage debt at any time, without penalty, which gives you the opportunity to pay off your mortgage early.

Interest gained in deposit accounts is considered as income in the UK and therefore taxed. With an offset mortgage the credit balance does not provide any interest as income but saves on the amount of interest charged on your mortgage debt. As there is no interest on the credit, there is no tax chargeable and therefore saves the mortgage account holder their hard earned cash.